Iran to start direct flights from Tehran to Cairo within a month

Direct flights between Tehran and Cairo could start within a month, an Iranian source in the tourism industry revealed yesterday.

Association of Iranian Travel Agencies Director Hormatollah Rafiei told reporters that direct trips from Tehran to Cairo could start within a month, provided that negotiations with the Egyptian Ministry of Tourism scheduled for next week in Tehran reach a positive result, according to the local Mehr news agency.

Rafiei added that while Sharm El-Sheikh is one of the popular tourist destinations in Egypt, for Iranians, Cairo is more attractive.

“We do not have direct flights at the present time, and to travel to Egypt we have to go to Baghdad in Iraq, because the consulate is stationed there. With this step, Iraq will not be used as an intermediary country while heading to Egypt, with the aim of saving time and reducing the cost of travel,” he said.

“In my last meeting with Egyptian government officials during my visit to Egypt last week, I suggested that our first flight symbolically depart from Tehran to Cairo with the improvement of bilateral relations and that visas be issued directly from Iran,” Rafiei added.

“Within a month, the status of Iranian tourists wishing to visit Egypt will be determined,” he noted.

The Iranian official said the director general of the Egyptian Ministry of Tourism will travel to Tehran next week, with the aim of discussing the details and setting a timeframe for the first trips.

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